A printer system may include an image forming apparatus having a photoconductor, an exposure source directed toward the photoconductor, and toner configured for developing an image. In one example of an image forming apparatus, a latent image is formed on the photoconductor by a laser (or other exposure source), and the latent image is developed with the toner prior to transfer of the toner/image to a print medium by a transfer mechanism. With some image forming devices, heat and pressure are used to fuse the toner/image onto the print medium.
Exemplary image forming devices may be configured to cycle in a loop where the transfer mechanism is provided as a belt or a drum. In any regard, some amount of toner invariably remains on the image transfer mechanism. The toner that is not transferred from the transfer mechanism is thus un-utilized (or under-utilized or waste), and this waste toner can lead to a build up of unused toner on the transfer mechanism that can undesirably affect image quality on the print medium.
For these and other reasons, a need exists for the present invention.